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Once again I’m going to delve into the pile of DVDs sent to me by A1 Productions, and this time we’re going back to last May, and the Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh for Absolute Combat 1: Proving Ground.

The show began with Bobby McVitie taking on Robert Whiteford. This proved to be an exciting opener, a back and forth affair in which both guys showed some good work on the ground. But during the fight Whiteford suffered a nasty cut to the top of the head, probably the result of an elbow which was obscured by the camera angle, and the ringside doctor pulled him out of the fight immediately when he began to feel woozy. Good fight, but a shame that it had to end this way.

Up next were Ash Illingworth and Bryan Thompson. A quick one here. After Thompson got the take down, there were a couple of reversals until Thompson moved into a position so he could apply an arm bar, with Illingworth tapping seconds later. Some nice, smooth action here. Very enjoyable.

Then it was on to Craig Thomson against Bearden Ogunyemi. The first fight to go past the first round was an entertaining affair. Thomson looked really strong in the first round, especially when using the muay thai clinch to deliver a series of knees. But Ogunyemi looked even better in the second, and after some good work on the ground he stood up. Thompson remained seated against the ropes, unsure as to his next move, and this hesitation led to his downfall as Ogunyemi applied a guillotine, taking the fight down to the mat and getting the submission win, ending a nice back and forth affair.

James Miller against Steven Sutherland was next on the agenda. A somewhat cagey start from both fighters here before they suddenly exploded into action with the heavy leather, with Sutherland knocking Miller onto his backside, following him down for some brief ground and pound, before synching in a guillotine choke for the impressive submission win.

Mark Comiskey and Adam Stevenson followed, in the first fight on the show to go the distance. This certainly was an interesting fight. Comiskey, for the most part, controlled the fight on the ground, although he seemed to lack that killer edge. Stevenson always seemed to leave his best work to the closing stages of each road, such as when he went for a heel hook in the first. As far as the judges were concerned, this obviously wasn’t enough, as they gave Comiskey the unanimous decision for his workmanlike performance.

So after that three round it was on to Chris Carmichael against Jordan Smith. This was a very good fight with good performances from both guys. Fought mainly on the ground it featured some nice reversals and transitions before Carmichael got the upper hand, applying an arm bar for the submission win.

So following that good battle it was on to Peter Wilson against Michael Wiseman. This one began with a nice exchange of kicks, before it went down to the ground where Wiseman had an unsuccessful guillotine attempt. Moments later Wilson began to work for a triangle choke. Wiseman managed to fight the attempt for quite a while before he bowed to the inevitable, ending a good fight that could have gone either way.

Then it was on to Rob Mills against Joe Nugent. The first blink and you’ll miss it affair of the evening saw Mills quickly knock Nugent to the ground. Nugent tried to go for what looked like an arm bar when Mills followed him down, but Mills quickly took his back and synched in a rear naked choke for the quick submission win. Impressive stuff.

After that quick fight we saw Kenny Dugay taking on Alan Love. Fought mainly on the ground, Dugay went for an early guillotine choke, and held it for some time until Love managed to escape. It was then Love all the way as he asserted his control on the ground, soon getting the mount for some ground and pound before moving to get the arm bar for the submission win. A very good performance from Love here, and ironic that I’m writing about Love’s victory on Valentine’s Day!

Then it was on to Matt Inman, taking on Colin Baxter. This was another quickie, which began with some quick exchanges, then a clinch against the ropes, before Inman locked in a standing guillotine for the submission win. This was a fast and frantic fight which could have gone either way.

Up next, Paul Jenkins against John Quinn. Interesting to note here that Jenkins came to the ring without any corner men, the first time I’ve ever seen that in any combat sport. A bit of feeling out at the beginning here, before Jenkins took the fight to the ground. However, it was Quinn who ended up in the dominant position, quickly moving to side control so he could apply a kimura for the submission win. Nice work by Quinn in this one, but the lack of corner men for Jenkins has left me a little baffled!

Ronan McKay against James Mair followed. A good ground battle here, with McKay on top in the early stages before Mair suddenly exploded into action and took control with some brief ground and pound from the mount, until he moved into position to apply an arm bar, with McKay quickly tapping.

The penultimate fight saw Frederic Fernandez take on Paul Reed. The quickest fight on the show saw Fernandez drop Reed with a big right, with the referee quickly stepping in after a brief period of ground and pound, giving Fernandez the TKO win with an explosive and impressive display.

The final fight of the evening saw Marcelo Costa going up against Paul McVeigh. This was only the second fight on the show to go the distance, and it was also the best. McVeigh looked in top form on the ground, especially in the third when it looked like he could get the win with an ankle lock. Costa, for his part, put on a good fight, but it just wasn’t enough as McVeigh’s performance earned him the unanimous decision.

In conclusion – out of all the A1 Productions DVDs I’ve reviewed recently, this may well be the best so far. The fight action was top notch, no flailing fighters looking like they’ve just walked in off the street here. Absolute Combat’s set-up also impressed me. The venue was sizeable with a large and very knowledgeable crowd, with not a drunken yob in sight. Production-wise it was great. The three camera set-up was perfect, there were on screen graphics for the fighters, and we also got to see the ring introductions, which is something that’s been lacking in some of the other A1 Productions stuff. So in all Proving Ground gets the seal of approval. It’s definitely worth getting if you want to explore the world of British mixed martial outs outside of television stalwarts BAMMA and Ultimate Challenge.

With thanks to Tom Tailford for supplying a copy of this release. To obtain a copy of Absolute Combat 1: Proving Ground, contact Tom via www.fight-factory.co.uk. You can also find out more information on the Absolute Combat promotion by visiting www.absolute-combat.co.uk.

THE TWO SHEDS REVIEW by Julian Radbourne – now in it’s 10th year!
E-mail: julian@twoshedsreview.com
Website: www.twoshedsreview.com
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A relatively new MMA debut made their television debut on Sky Sports here in Britain this past Wednesday night as Knuckle Up presented their Origin show, hosted by Lisa Nash and Dane Bowers.

The show began with amateur middleweight action between Matt Holmes and Aston Kehoe. An enjoyable encounter between two debuting fighters with both putting on a good show in the first round. Holmes sustained a nasty cut above his right eye at the beginning of the second, and after some brief ground work Kehoe connected with a left hook that sent Holmes crashing to the ground, with the referee stopping the fight as Kehoe earned the KO win with a very good performance.

Then it was down to the lightweight division as Daniel Thomas faced Stuart Davies. Fought mainly on the ground, Thomas dominated as soon as he got the take down, controlling Davies throughout. There just didn’t seem anything that Davies could do, and his one escape attempt was easily foiled. Thomas kept up his attack, and with Davies unable to withstand the ground and pound the referee stepped in with just ten seconds left in the first round. It may not have been flashy, but it was a good solid performance from Thomas here.

After brief highlights of some of the other fights on the show, welterweight action followed as Simon Phillips faced Danny Mitchell. A nice back and forth encounter saw Mitchell drop Phillips early on, but as the round progressed Phillips began to assert his authority on the ground. The action continued in the same vein in the second, with both fighters having their moments, but it was early in the third where Mitchell hurt the M-1 veteran with some knees in the muay thai clinch, and as Phillips slumped to the ground Mitchell quickly took his back to deliver some ground and pound, and with Phillips failing to defend himself, the referee stopped the fight, giving Mitchell the TKO win in a fight where both guys put in impressive performances.

The first title fight of the night followed, with Kevin Reed challenging Jake Blyth for the British Welterweight title. This proved to be a very interesting encounter. An unfortunate slip early on saw Reed take the guard, but a lack of action saw the referee stand the fighters up. Blyth then scored with a take down of his own, and put in some good work on the ground. Round two saw some nice back and forth action, until Blyth got Reed up against the cage and locked in a side choke for the submission win. Some nice action throughout here, and two good performances.

The man event saw John Phillips facing Matt Thorpe for the vacant British Middleweight title. This one lasted less than a minute. Both guys were swinging for the trees early on, and after Thorpe failed with his take down attempt, Phillips’ ground and pound hurt him quickly, and it wasn’t long before the referee called a halt to the proceedings giving Phillips the win and the title with a very good effort.

In conclusion – my first experience of the Knuckle Up promotion was a good one, as this proved to be a very entertaining show. The five fights that were shown in full certainly delivered. Production-wise things were very good. Messrs Bowers and Nash proved to be amiable hosts, although Nash was lacking in her MMA knowledge a little, as was evident in her interview. I was a slightly disappointed that we weren’t introduced to the commentators. They could have been two blokes who just walked in off the street for all we knew! But in all a very enjoyable show, and kudos to Sky Sports for giving us more MMA action.

Review courtesy Julian Radbourne @ www.twoshedsreview.com

British mixed martial arts is on the agenda again as we take a look back at Ultimate Challenge’s first show of 2010, Resurrection, shown on Sky Sports this past Wednesday here in Britain, and hosted by O.J. Borg and Dave O’Donnell, with Rob Nutley, Pierre Guillet and Malcolm Martin handling commentary duties.

The broadcast began with lightweight action as Azran Quasid took on Scott Jansen. This certainly proved to be an interesting and explosive battle. The early parts of this fight will be remembered for it’s rule infringements. Jansen was poked in the eye, Quasid was hit in the ground, and Jansen then elbowed Quasid right in the spine. Then we got the stand up battle. Quasid bloodied Jansen’s nose, before a vicious elbow opened up a nasty cut on Quasid’s head. Then, when we all thought we’d get a knockout, Jansen got the submission win with a textbook kimura, and all of  this in the first round! An explosive start to the show, and a great fight as well.

The big boys were up next, as Peter Yendell faced Karlos Vemola at heavyweight. This one was quick. Vemola came out straight away with a barrage of blows before getting a big take down. A few seconds later a series of big rights did for Yendell with the referee quickly stepping in, giving Vemola the knockout victory with a very impressive performance.

The heavyweight action continued with Shola Adeniran and Stav Economu. This one began with some wild shots from both men, before Economu got the big take down. The big man quickly moved to the full mount for some ground and pound. Seconds alter he took Adeniran’s back, and with his opponent flat out on the ground, Economu synched in a rear naked choke for the submission win. You know, if you look at Economu you’d think he’s just a big fat guy, but this guy has some impressive skills.

Kickboxing action was up next, with Mark Weir facing Mark Epstein for the vacant UK1 Middleweight title, a title recently held by a certain Alex Reid. Fought over three two minute rounds, it saw mixed fortunes for these MMA standouts. While Weir seemed to get more and more comfortable as the fight went on, Epstein seemed to struggle somewhat as he was put on his backside twice, taking two eight counts. The fight went the distance, with Weir getting the unanimous decision. While Weir’s performance was okay, Epstein was very disappointing.

The main event saw former Ultimate Fighter contestant Dean Amasinger challenge Alberto Mina for the Welterweight title. This was definitely the best fight on the show. Both fighters paced themselves brilliantly throughout, and showed some tremendous skills as well. Mina looked very comfortable on the ground with his submission attempts, with Amasinger showing great defensive work as he made his escapes. Both men looked fresh as the third round began, and halfway through Mina scored with a take down, getting the mount and taking Amasinger’s back moments later. Amasinger was flat out and offering no defence as Mina unleashed with the ground and pound, with the referee eventually stepping in and giving Mina the title retaining TKO victory. It’s a good job that this fight ended with a stoppage as the judges would have had a hard time separating these two, it was that close.

In conclusion – Ultimate Challenge’s first show of the year certainly delivered. While I wasn’t exactly impressed with the Weir/Epstein kickboxing fight, the four MMA fights were certainly worth watching, with the Amasinger/Mina main event worth the price of admission alone. Dave O’Donnell and his crew once again proved that they are the top MMA promotion in Britain at the moment, although I do wish Sky would give them a longer time slot, as they did in the old Cage Rage days.

Review courtesy Julian Radbourne @ http://www.twoshedsreview.com

It’s time to enter the world of British mixed martial arts as once again I dip into the pile of A1 Productions DVDs. This time we’re heading back to Hartlepool and March 2008 for the Closed Combat Arena “Put Up of Shut Up” show.

The first four fights were kickboxing affairs, begi9nning with Kristina Pook against Jen Walsh. This was a nice little exhibition bout, with Walsh clearly the better fighter. The referee declared the fight a draw afterwards.

The action continued with Brett Ramshaw against Matt Fidler. With the rounds lasting only ninety seconds, the pace of this one was quite frantic, except when Fidler’s ill-fitting head guard kept falling off. Fidler dispersed with the guard for the remainder of the fight, and it helped him no end, as Ramshaw was on the canvas twice, with the referee giving the fight to Fidler.

The kickers continued with Karl Pugh and Nick Clougher. No head guards to worry about in this one, and it was a far more entertaining fight because of it. Pugh put on a good performance, putting Clougher on his backside in the first, and twice more in the second. After the first knockdown in the second Clougher looked like he’d had enough, so it wasn’t a surprise when the ref stepped in, giving Pugh the deserved TKO win.

Next was Andy Hanlon against Danny Thompson. This was another of those frantic fast paced battles, with both guys swinging from the trees from the opening bell, and both scoring with some good shots, with Hanlon getting the decision.

The MMA action began with Michael Lund facing Simon Ng. This was a pretty even fight. Ng controlled the action in the first after a take down, going for a guillotine as the round ended. Lund came back strongly in the second with a big slam and kimura attempt, before taking Ng’s back after a second take down. So with both men winning a round, the referee declared the fight a draw, although I got the feeling that Lund would have take it if the rounds had been longer.

Then it was on to James Fleet, taking on Alfas Miah. Fleet came forward early here, only to find himself in a couple of clinches against the cage, before Miah took the fight to the ground. However, as he landed Fleet took Miah’s back, and quickly transitioned to the guard. It was long though before Miah locked in an arm bar, with Fleet tapping mere seconds later, ending a very enjoyable fight.

Action from Adam Mossap against Kristian Warham followed. The second two rounder to go the distance was another even affair, with both men getting their share of take downs and submission attempts. Once again the referee couldn’t separate the fighters as he declared it a draw, although I thought that Warham had just nicked it.

Mark Pendlington against Henry Jack was next. There was really no doubt who was going to win this one. From the moment the fight started Pendlington controlled almost every aspect, especially on the ground, as Jack looked like the proverbial fish out of water. The only thing that Pendlington was missing was a finishing move, but what he did was enough to earn the decision.

Then it was on to Christopher O’Keefe, taking on Amir Azam. Unlike the other fights that went the distance this was a more one-sided affair as Azam controlled the action on the ground in the first. O’Keefe had his moments in the second, but his failure to obey his corner’s orders during his brief moments of superiority cost him as Azam took the decision with a very good performance.

On to Matt Fleet against Andy Treen. A good performance by Treen as he controlled the fight whenever it went to the ground. Fleet got a couple of take downs, but Treen reversed immediately, and soon transitioned into his desired position after the second take down so he could apply an arm bar. Nice work here.

Next up, Damian Rounding versus Chris Douglas. This was another of those good back and forth affairs. An inadvertent low blow by Douglas seemed to spur Rounding on as he controlled the remainder of the first round. Douglas came back well in the second and showed some great ground work, but another inadvertent blow, this time to the throat, halted any momentum he had built up, which probably cost him the decision as well as Rounding came back strongly in the final few seconds.

Kalum Lodge versus Elliot McGlade was next on the agenda. The blink and you’ll miss it affair. Both men threw some wild kicks at the beginning, before McGlade applied a standing guillotine, quickly pulling guard, with Lodge tapping seconds later. A really good performance by McGlade here.

Malcolm Maize against Keith Kennedy followed that rather quick affair. Slugfest is probably the best way to describe this one. A big left from Maize sent Kennedy down early on, and although he looked like he was going to win the fight there and then, Kennedy came back strongly. Maize’s mistake was that he kept looking for another big left, and this one dimensional approach played right into Kennedy’s hands as his combinations saw him getting the TKO victory.

Then it was on to Thomas Izzett against Oobie Rahman. Another nice back and forth affair saw Rahman throwing some good kicks in the first, only for Izzett to take him down, dominating whenever the fight went down to the mat. The roles were reversed in the second though as Rahman was able to get the take down early in the second, quickly moving to side control so he could apply an arm bar for submission victory.

Michael Young was next, taking on Shaun Crawford. This one went to the ground immediately, as we got an entertaining exchange of submission attempts, before Young went for his second guillotine attempt. Crawford fought it at first with a few fists to the ribs before the inevitable tap out. If only all ground work was like this!

The penultimate fight saw Peter Biggins going up against Rob Hughes. This fight went downstairs quickly when Hughes pulled guard after a clinch against the cage. He then went straight for an arm bar, and although Biggins tried to slam his way out three times, Hughes managed to synch the hold in fully for the submission win, another fight with some very good ground work.

The final fight of the show saw Ian Cooper tackling Gary Firby. Another quick fight saw Cooper knocked on his backside early on, but he soon took the guard after Firby followed him to the ground. Cooper quickly established control, with the referee quickly stepping in after Cooper’s relentless ground and pound, a good fight to round off the show with.

The only extras come in the form of a musical photo montage.

In conclusion – a very enjoyable release from A1 Productions here, a good blend of kickboxing and MMA action. There was some really good talent on display here, some to keep an eye out for in the future. However, I do feel somewhat disappointed again by the lack of on-screen graphics when the fighters entered the cage, so unless you’ve got a print out telling you the results for review purposes, those watching this may get a little confused.

But then again, this is the only downside of this release, and I’m once again able to recommend a slice of British MMA action.

With thanks to Tom Tailford for supplying a copy of this release. To purchase a copy of Closed Combat Arena: Put Up or Shut Up, contact Tom via www.fight-factory.co.uk.

Review courtesy Julian Radbourne @ www.twoshedsreview.com

Even though the year is over for the Ultimate Fighting Championship it doesn’t mean the end of mixed martial arts on British television, as Ultimate Challenge presented their latest show, Fighting for Heroes, on Sky Sports this past Wednesday night, hosted, as always, by Dave O’Donnell and O.J. Borg, with Rob Nutley and Pierre Guillet handling commentary duties.

The broadcast began with Luke Smith facing Wesley Johnson for the Grand Prix Lightweight title. This was a great fight, the perfect way to start the show, with the striker Smith against the grappler Johnson. Smith looked like he was going to get the early win after a decent combination, but Johnson recovered quickly when he took the fight to the ground. A couple of submission attempts followed, before an untimely slip by Johnson gave Smith the opening he was looking for, with the referee stopping the action when Johnson had no reply to Smith’s ground and pound, ending what was a highly enjoyable fight.

Kickboxing action followed, with Jason Barrett and Scott Jansen fighting it out over the UK1 Welterweight title. This proved to be a nice variation to the MMA action, with a pretty even looking first round, before Jansen turned things up a notch in the second and third rounds. No knockouts here, so the judges were called on to render a decision, unanimous in favour of Jansen. Good decision there.

The title action continued with Wayne Weaver facing Ben Smith for the Grand Prix Heavyweight title. Sadly, we only got highlights for this one, with the first round cut completely, and only brief highlights from the second, which saw Smith take the win with a rear naked choke. A shame we didn’t see all of this fight, because what we did see looked pretty good.

Then it was on the Interim Lightweight title fight between Mark Glover and Michael Pastou. This was another highlights only deal. From what we saw it looked like a pretty good back and forth technical battle, with Pastou getting the unanimous decision. Just a shame that this was the second fight in a row where large chunks were missing.

More Grand Prix title action followed, with Tam Khan and Jamie Hearn in the middleweight division. Finally, we got to see a full fight again, mainly because it didn’t actually last that long. After some feeling out from both fighters, Hearn, a late replacement who took the fight at a day’s notice, connected with a big right that sent Khan crashing to the mat. An amazing performance from Hearn, considering how much time he had to prepare.

The last fight of the evening saw Jimi Manuwa defending his Light Heavyweight title against Shaun Lomas. After some early exchanges Manuwa scored with a big take down, and after a brief period of ground and pound Lomas reversed the positions. This didn’t stop Manuwa though, and Lomas looked like he was going to tap to Manuwa’s arm bar, but a return to the mount saw more ground and pound, and although Lomas was defending himself he wasn’t fighting back, so it wasn’t long before the referee stepped in and stopped the fight, giving Manuwa the title retaining win, ending a very entertaining fight.

In conclusion – another strong encounter from Dave O’Donnell and his crew here. There were some really strong outings here, although I was very disappointed that a couple of the fights were heavily clipped. Hopefully this won’t be the case when the next Ultimate Challenge show is broadcast on Sky Sports next February.

THE TWO SHEDS REVIEW by Julian Radbourne
E-mail: julian@twoshedsreview.com
Website: www.twoshedsreview.com
Blog: www.myspace.com/twosheds316
Facebook: www.facebook.com/twosheds316 – add me as your friend!
Online Store: www.lulu.com/twosheds316 – download Anglo-Force & The Valkyrie Chronicles for FREE!

It’s time to step into the world of British mixed martial arts, and we’re once again paying a visit to the MAPP UK promotion, to take a look at their second show, The Champions 2, held at Cedar Court in Leeds, Yorkshire, back in August 2008.

The show began with John Moore facing Nate Simpson in the final of the Caged Steel in the Club tournament. It was an okay fight, nothing overly spectacular. Moore looked like he could get the win in the second round, but his lack of any submission attempts when he had control on the ground cost him. Both fighters looked exhausted in the third, and it looked like it would peter out until Simpson got the submission win with a rear naked choke.

Next up was Richard Belcher against Kevin Coop. This one featured some nice, fast paced action. Both men definitely came out to fight here, and although the action was a little messy at times, it was fun to watch. It could have gone either way, the way these two were banging, but Coop got the win here, dishing out some brutal ground and pound until a series of knees to Belcher’s ribs ended things with a referee’s stoppage.

Then it was on to Bryan O’Connor against Dean Thorpe, in the first blink and you’ll miss it affair. After a quick exchange of blows, O’Connor got a takedown, only to fall prey to Thorpe’s guillotine choke. O’Connor quickly tapped, fight time – just thirty nine seconds. Explosive and impressive stuff from O’Connor here.

Richie Ryder versus Kenny Dugay followed. This one was brutal, and it was obvious from the start that it wasn’t going to go to the ground as the heavy blows started as soon as the bell rang. Ruder was quickly cut open by a knee in the clinch, but the medics let the fight go on, and things continued in the same vein. It wasn’t long before the claret began to flow for Dugay as well, but in the end another big knee to the head sent Ryder reeling, and as Dugay followed up with a torrent of blows, the referee stepped in to stop the onslaught, giving the Dugay the TKO win. Well, it was brutal to watch, but also strangely compelling.

An encounter between Dennis Webb and Paul Durber followed. This was another fast paced fight with plenty of back and forth action, and saw both men going all out from the opening bell. The exchanges were lightening fast, but as the round went on Webb was visibly tiring, so much so that when he got a take down, Durber quickly reversed things and took the guard, soon synching in an arm bar for the submission win. Great action throughout here.

James Parker versus Jon Waterhouse followed. This was a far more technical battle than any of the previous fights. Parker showed some great ground work after escaping from Waterhouse’s guillotine attempt. Once Parker got the fight back down to the ground he went to work, first going for a key lock, then a kimura, before finally getting the submission win with an arm bar, rounding off a great technical display, a  welcome change to the previous slugfests.

James Anderson against Philip Hoban proved to be a very interesting fight, fought at a quite frantic pace over it’s two round duration. Hoban was clearly the better man in the stand up game, rocking Anderson as he swung for the trees, but when the fight went down to the ground it seemed as if the fighters struggled a little. Hoban went for a couple of arm submissions, but that was it, and it was his superiority in the stand up game that probably earned him the unanimous decision.

Then it was on to Nij Wright against Matthew Earnshaw. This fight had the spark that the previous one lacked. Wright took control early on with a big slam, but after the fighters got to their feet there were some frantic exchanges before Earnshaw defended a take down attempt, took side control, and synched in a key lock for the submission win, bringing to an end a good fight.

Liam O’Neil then faced Qasim Shafiq. This was another of those rather interesting fights that went the distance. Both fighters showed some good take down skills, but after they got there they just lacked that certain spark, and although there were some submission attempts, nothing came of them. Neither man had any real success in the stand up either with their wild brawling. In the end the unanimous decision went to Shafiq, although it could have gone either way.

Mark Stoker and Andrew Farrell followed that particular affair. Now this was more like it. Farrell looked intense as he came to the ring, and went to work straight away, taking Stoker down and soon moving into position so he could apply an arm triangle for the submission win, the second blink and you’ll miss it fight on the show.

The penultimate fight saw James Williams facing Mark Aldridge. This was another exciting fight. Williams looked even more intense than Farrell in the previous fight, and you could tell what was on his mind during the pre-fight instructions. He got the immediate take down, and went for the ground and pound. Aldridge’s brief escape only delayed the inevitable, which came after Williams took Aldridge’s back and delivered more punishment. When Aldridge stopped defending himself, the referee stopped the onslaught, giving Williams the well deserved TKO win.

The main event saw Tomasz Wisiniewski taking on Justin Wring. This was a good little fight, with Tomasz getting the quick take down, and soon moving into the mount where he went for some ground and pound. He then quickly moved to the side, applying an arm bard for the quick submission win.

DVD extras come in the form of a photo gallery, fighter intros, a highlight video and a segment featuring an MMA fighter taking on a professional wrestler. Now this isn’t as good as it sounds, because it’s obvious from the outset that it’s a complete work. The supposed MMA practitioner uses several pro wrestling moves, and the execution and selling of the moves is really poor.

In conclusion – a mixed bag of action here. While there are some good fights, there’s also some quite messy affairs, especially as far as some of the fighter’s boxing skills are concerned. So, if you willing to take the bad with the good, then you may find something here to your liking.

With thanks to Tom Tailford for supplying a copy of this release. For more information on how you can get a copy, Tom can be contact via www.fight-factory.co.uk.

THE TWO SHEDS REVIEW by Julian Radbourne
E-mail: julian@twoshedsreview.com
Website: www.twoshedsreview.com
Blog: www.myspace.com/twosheds316
Facebook: www.facebook.com/twosheds316 – add me as your friend!
Online Store: www.lulu.com/twosheds316 – download Anglo-Force & The Valkyrie Chronicles for FREE!

THE TWO SHEDS REVIEW by Julian Radbourne
E-mail: julian@twoshedsreview.com
Website: www.twoshedsreview.com
Blog: www.myspace.com/twosheds316
Facebook: www.facebook.com/twosheds316 – add me as your friend!
Online Store: www.lulu.com/twosheds316 – download Anglo-Force & The Valkyrie Chronicles for FREE!

It’s time to step into the mixed martial arts world again, and this time we’re going to take a look at the debut show of British promotion Martial Arts Partnership Promotions UK, and their debut show The Champions, filmed by A1 Productions and held at the Cedar Court Hotel in Leeds back in May 2008, with a massive thirteen fights on the card.

The show began with Kevin Coop facing Alfas Miah. This proved to be a very enjoyable contest, but sadly it had a rather unfortunate ending. After putting in a very good performance, Coop connected with what looked like an inadvertent low knee. After a few moments it was deemed that Miah was unable to continue, with the MC saying that it was due to a blow to the head, which did confuse me a little. The fight was therefore ruled a no contest, which was a shame, because Coop would probably have won, given his performance here.

Fight two saw Dave Kettlewell taking on Chris Noon. Two rounds of great action here, with numerous take downs, reversals and submission attempts. Both men put on a good showing, impressing this particular writer. The end came in the last minute of the second round. Noon slammed Kettlewell close to the corner, with Kettlewell verbally submitting almost instantly, ending a nice little fight, with Noon just edging it for me performance wise.

Declan Williams against Oobie Rahman was next. This one was fought at a frantic pace, with Williams getting the first take down, Rahman countering, Williams countering him, and so on, and just over a minute into the fight Williams scored with another take down, locking on a guillotine choke with Rahman duly tapped out to. Not quite a blink and you’ll miss it affair, but good action nonetheless.

Then came the only fight of the show to go the two round distance, with Qasim Shafiq going up against Peter Lynch. Shafiq put in a tremendous performance here, seemingly able to take Lynch down at will, and almost getting the win with a kimura attempt that seemed to last for an age. It was pretty much the same for the entire fight, although Lynch took Shafiq’s back briefly, but didn’t really do anything. Shafiq took the unanimous judges decision for his display of dominance, and rightfully so.

Things returned to normal with the next fight, Neema Hashima against Bryan O’Connor. Hashima showed some good skill here, with some crisp-looking transitions, before locking in a triangle choke for the submission win. Nice stuff from Hashima here.

The next fight was a back and forth affair between Shadu Ali and Lee Jones. Both fighters showed some good skill with their striking and submission attempts, with Jones clearly winning the first round, and Ali really upping his game in the second, applying an arm bar early on in the round for the submission win, tapping off a nice comeback, and ending a very good fight.

Philip Hoban and Chris Jones (not sure if he’s any relation to Lee) almost went into the second round. Hoban was the dominating force here, working well on the ground, first getting the mount for some ground and pound, before transitioning to side control for a couple of submission attempts. Jones looked utterly helpless at times, and just thirteen seconds before the end of the round Hoban locked in a triangle choke, with Jones quickly tapping. A great performance from Hoban here. Jones didn’t really get a look in at all.

Tom Cunnington versus Pete Hill was the first blink and you’ll miss it affair of the night, and it had a rather strange beginning. As Hill entered the ring he took off his fight shorts, wanting to fight in his underwear. Of course, the referee was having none of that, and ordered him to put his shorts on again. This little exchange lasted longer than the fight. Hill got a quick take down and immediately went for an arm bar. Cunnington soon tapped. A nice performance from Hill here, but what was the deal with his underwear?

Andy Reid against Scott McClellan was just a few seconds longer than the previous fight. It was also a rather odd fight. Reid began with a kick before a right knocked McClellan down. The referee checked McClellan, and the fight continued. Then another quick right sent McClellan back down. McClellan promptly got up, and a third right promptly sent him down again, with the referee calling a halt to proceedings at the thirty-two second mark. I’m really not sure what to make of this one.

The fight number reached double figures with Tom Widnieski facing Steve Martin. (No, it’s not THAT Steve Martin). Widnieski was another of those fighters who dominated his opponent, able to transition at will. There was a brief stand up, but they soon went back down to the ground, with Widnieski going for a couple of kimura, and getting the submission at the second attempt in a really impressive outing.

Marcin Gorzala against Nathan Joseph was next. Another fight that went into the second round, the only thing of note to happen in the first was when the referee warned Joseph for kneeing Gorzala in the head while they were in the north/south position, and it was from that particular position that Gorzala got the win, unloading with a series of punches to Joseph’s mid-section, and when Joseph failed to respond to this attack, the referee stepped in and stopped the fight, giving the TKO win to Gorzala. This was an okay fight, but it was the first time I’d seen someone get a TKO victory from the north/south position.

The penultimate fight saw Danny Carr face Niko Gjorka. Round one began with a quick exchange of blows, before Gjorka attempted a guillotine choke that seemed to last for ages. Not even a slam from Carr could get him to break the hold. Eventually Carr did, and he came back strongly in the second round, getting the win with a rear naked choke. This was a very exciting fight, and the fight of the night for me.

The main event saw Dave Hirst against Richard Taylor. Hirst put in a good little performance here, getting the take down after a clinch in the corner, and quickly moving to side control so he could lock in a side choke for the submission win.

DVD extras come on the form of a highlight reel, set to the tune of Queen’s classic “We Are The Champions”, and still photos from the event.

In conclusion – in case you haven’t guessed already, I really enjoyed this DVD. While I wasn’t exactly familiar with any of the fighters on show here, I was really impressed with some of the dominating performances here. It’s another case that if you scratch below the surface of the top MMA companies here in Britain, you may find something you like. So this DVD comes highly recommended.

With thanks Tom Tailford of A1 Productions for supplying a copy of this release. If you would like to purchase a copy of MAPP UK The Champions, visit either www.mappuk.com or www.fight-factory.co.uk for more details.

THE TWO SHEDS REVIEW by Julian Radbourne
E-mail: julian@twoshedsreview.com
Website: www.twoshedsreview.com
Blog: www.myspace.com/twosheds316
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My latest review sees me going back to an arena I know quite well, the Waveney Sports & Leisure Centre in the Suffolk coastal town of Lowestoft. I’ve reviewed quite a few professional wrestling shows there, but I’m not reviewing a wrestling show now. We’re going to take a look at the DVD release of MMA promotion Fight Factory’s debut show Relentless, held just over a year ago.

The show features nine fights, and begins with a grappling contest featuring Fabio Ferrari and Loia Bamgbaia. I suppose you could really call this an exhibition more than anything else, as it was fought over a solitary five minute round. There was lots of feeling out early on before Bamgbaia got the first take down, before Ferrari showed some good transitions. There were a couple of submission attempts, but neither man could get the decisive win, leaving the decision for the judges, who awarded the fight to Ferrari. This wasn’t too bad I suppose, but I think that this sort of contest will take some getting used to.

Then it was on to the first MMA fight of the show, beginning with a semi-pro lightweight fight pitting Tom Tailford, the guy who asked me to review this DVD, and Will West. This proved to be a very interesting contest, with both men putting in a good account for themselves, with the pace slowing down somewhat in the second, although Tom put in a bit more work. This was enough to earn him the win. I think the best way I could describe this fight is that although it was enjoyable, both fighters looked a little rough around the edges at times.

Ricky Bryans against Mill Millican at welterweight was next. This was a highly impressive performance from Millican as he went forward early on and scored with a quick take down. From there he showed some good transitions, before Bryans verbally submitted as Millican rained down with a torrent of blows. A good performance from Millican here, while Bryans didn’t really seem to have any answer to the onslaught that defeated him.

There was then a break from the MMA action as Jed Molyneaux faced Dan Weiss in a kickboxing match. This was a messy, bad tempered affair, and wasn’t that good to watch if I’m being totally honest. There were low blows, punches to the back of the head, long rest periods because of the rules infringements and lots of complaining, which is probably why the performances of both fighters were scrappy to say the least. Weiss won the judges decision, but neither fighter did themselves any credit here.

The next two fights were the proverbial blink and you’ll miss it affairs, beginning with Ashley Winn facing Paul Barnett at middleweight. Winn got the quick take down, went for the ground and pound, then took Barnett’s back before tapping out after more of Winn’s ground and pound. Nice work from Mr. Winn here.

John Mezzetti

Alex Morris against John Mezzetti at lightweight followed. I’m going to be totally biased with regards to this particular encounter. John Mezzetti and I went to the same school. I was in the same class as his sister Maria, and his Gran and Uncle used to live over the road from me. John also runs the Fighting Fit Martial Arts Academy in my hometown of Cromer. So, with all that out of the way, this one was even quicker than the previous fight. John connected with a hard kick to Morris’ ribs. Morris fell to the canvas, and the referee stopped the fight, giving Mezzetti the ten second knock out win. The kick was so loud everyone in the arena probably heard it, and it came as no surprise that Morris was sporting a nasty bruise as the announcement was made. Nice one John.

Light heavyweight action was next, with John Calderwood taking on Francesco Zand. This was another semi-pro fight that went the two round distance. There were quite a few periods of inactivity in the first round, although Zand did pull off a few good transitions. The action slowed down quite a bit in the second, with both men showing some good ground and pound. The judges couldn’t separate them though, and declared the fight a draw, although I thought Zand just edged it.

The penultimate fight saw Lee Elliott face Matt West at lightweight. For me this was the perfect example of what a referee shouldn’t do. Elliott was absolutely relentless with his punches here, and when the fight went to the ground his ground and pound was even more so, and when West was offering no defence I kept wondering why the referee didn’t step in to save him. He soon had to though, as Elliott soon synched in a guillotine choke for the submission win, and while this was a good performance by Elliott, the referee should have ended it much sooner.

The final fight saw Shaun Gruncell facing Dan Cubitt in middleweight action. British MMA fans may remember Cubitt from his appearances for Cage Rage and Ultimate Challenge UK. Cubitt also trains at John Mezzetti’s gym, so I can’t be completely unbiased here, although I don’t really need to, because Cubitt put in a great performance here, almost dominating in every aspect of the fight, from the stand up game to the ground and pound. But he was somewhat unlucky though, in the sense that he couldn’t finish Gruncell off, even though he went for a few arm submissions. It wasn’t surprising when Cubitt got the judges decision after three rounds of hard fought action. It was a well deserved win.

In conclusion, apart from the messy kickboxing bout, this was a very good show. Granted, a couple of the fighters looked a little rough and ready, but overall this was a very enjoyable show, and although some people may be put off by the lack of commentary, I would definitely recommend to MMA fans who want to sample MMA outside of a UFC octagon.

With thanks to Tom Tailford for supplying a copy of this release. For more details of this release, visit www.fight-factory.co.uk.

THE TWO SHEDS REVIEW by Julian Radbourne
E-mail: julian@twoshedsreview.com
Website: www.twoshedsreview.com
Blog: www.myspace.com/twoshed316
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Tom Tailford (top)

Over the past couple of years I’ve had quite a bit of contact with a guy called Tom Tailford. Tom is a mixed martial arts fighter, based in sunny Lowestoft, who also works for the Fight Factory promotion and website. He also spends a lot of time travelling the country filming various MMA shows.

Recently Tom was kind enough to send me a batch of DVDs to review, but instead of reviewing one of them, I’m going to take a look back at the promotion Tom was involved with a couple of years ago, the short-lived Cage Fight Series. They held their debut show in May 2007, at Trinity Park in Ipswich. Most of the fights were uploaded to their website, so yours truly downloaded them and burned them onto DVD, and it’s these matches that I’m going to take a look at now.

First up was a welterweight contest, featuring Jared Ferre against Daniel Thomas. This was a very enjoyable opener in a way, although I’d hardly describe the action as top notch, as it was somewhat messy at times, although both fighters did show a lot of raw talent. Thomas came out on top in this one, with Ferre submitting to a guillotine choke in round three.

The second fight veered away from MMA, and saw young ladies Shalina Roberts and Alexis Rufus taking part in a cage boxing bout. I always though that cage boxing was an interesting concept, one that, sadly, the Cage Fight Series guys couldn’t get off the ground, mainly because they had to cancel their first show because for logistical reasons. This certainly was a good contest, fought over three rounds, in which both women put on a good showing, with Rufus winning by majority decision. My only criticism of this is that it could have done with a few more rounds.

Then it was back to MMA action, with Lee Doski facing Kevin Reed in welterweight action. This was a great little fight, with good stand-up action, and ever better action on the ground. Doski looked very impressive here, getting the win in round two, unleashing with the ground and pound on Reed, with the referee stepping in and calling a halt to the action.

Lightweight action followed, with Vaclav Pribyl taking on Lautaro Arborelo. I had been really impressed with the Spanish contingent during my recent Ultimate Combat DVD reviews, so I was looking forward to seeing Arborelo in action. His performance was both good and bad. He totally dominated Pribyl at times, but even though he was overwhelming his opponent for the most part he just couldn’t find that extra push to put the guy away. Pribyl was clearly getting frustrated though, and was warned by the referee for elbowing Arborelo in the back of the head. The fight went the three round distance, with Arborelo getting the unanimous decision.

Tim McCory against Florian Muller at light heavyweight was the proverbial blink and you’ll miss it affair here. Muller avoided McCory’s take down attempt, took his back, and synched in a rear naked choke for the 44 second victory. Impressive stuff from Muller here.

The next fight saw another Spanish fighter, Oriol Gaset, taking on Che Mills at welterweight. Gaset didn’t do as well as his countryman. This one began quickly, and soon went to the ground, with Mills getting the win with a rear naked choke. A good display from Mills here.

Then it was on to Phil Harris against Michal Hamrsmid at featherweight. This one had a rather unfortunate ending. When Hamrsmid slammed Harris down to the mat close to the fence, some of the protective padding came loose, and Harris sustained a cut to the back of his head. The referee stopped the fight immediately, ruling it a no contest.

Jake Blyth (photo courtesy www.mmauniverse.com

The final fight saw Jake Blyth face Paul Jenkins at middleweight. This was a great way to end the show. Blyth took the fight to the ground early, and worked well with the elbows and the ground and pound, opening up a nasty cut above Jenkins’ left eye. Jenkins survived the round, but was pulled out by the doctor shortly afterwards, giving Blyth the win.

In conclusion – this was a very enjoyable show. There were some good fights here, although things did seem a little rough around the edges at times. Production wise it was okay, although there were no pre-fight introductions from announcer Ian Freeman, which made things a little confusing at times.

Now while this event is not commercially available on DVD, some of the fights are available on my Youtube page at www.youtube.com/twosheds316.